Nelson Chenault/US PresswireAaron Johnson and Alabama-Birmingham will play in tonight's "First Four" play-in game against Clemson, for the right to play as the No. 12 seed Thursday in Tampa, Fla.

DAYTON, Ohio — Just after 7 o’clock Monday night, Alabama-Birmingham’s two stars, Aaron Johnson and Jamarr Sanders, stood on the entrance ramp to the court inside Dayton Arena. They quietly whispered to each other, unsure of whom to ask to find the locker rooms. Finally, a kindly older man plucked the two lost Blazers from embarrassment and pointed them in the right direction.

It felt like the first time in the last 48 hours where someone made them feel welcomed at the NCAA Tournament.

You see, when UAB’s name — and résumé — popped up in the bracket Sunday night, it brought with it a swell of vitriol that was a total surprise.

“This should be the happiest time in these student-athletes’ lives,” UAB coach Mike Davis said. “To get in the Big Dance is a special event for all student-athletes. That’s their dream. That one shining moment is the dream.”

That shine for UAB? Tarnished before the bracket was even completely revealed. Many analysts panned the inclusion of the regular-season champions of Conference USA in the field of 68, mainly because they had lost in the quarterfinals of their conference tournament. Even though the Blazers (22-8) will play in tonight’s “First Four” play-in game against Clemson (21-11), for the right to play as the No. 12 seed Thursday in Tampa, Fla. in the East Region, the outcry for their selection was palpable.

ESPN analyst Jay Bilas was the loudest critic saying Sunday night: “These were bad decisions. They’re indefensible.” He also added that Harvard had as good of a case for an at-large team as UAB.

“It’s just those guys doing their job,” Sanders said today. “I mean, they get paid to comment on their opinions on basketball. So I just take it as they’re doing their job. I mean, they believe other teams should be in, that’s what they believe. That’s their opinion. But the committee selected us to be in, so that’s all we care about.”

Johnson had a much more direct response to the critics: “I’d rather not comment on ignorance. That’s the only thing I believe.”

Others piled on the backlash bandwagon. UAB? It paid no mind to the critics. After three years of waiting on the bubble — and ending up on the wrong side each time — it wasn’t about to let pundits spoil its prized moment.

“It didn’t spoil my moment at all,” Johnson said. “I mean, I danced the whole time I was in my room when I was watching Jay Bilas and all the rest of them talk down about us, because their facial expression — they seemed like they wanted to cry.”

Even the chairman of the selection committee — Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith — was forced to defend the pick during a Sunday evening conference call with reporters.

“We looked at them very, very hard,” Smith said. “They’re a strong ball club. They played a very good schedule. They executed well within that schedule.”

For Alabama-Birmingham, making its first NCAA appearance since 2006 wasn’t going to be dimmed by the comments of those on the outside. Davis smiled, but said he did not hear any of the remarks made about his team’s selection into the field. While others have filled his ear with the sound bites, Davis is focusing on one thing: tonight’s game.